Affliction (episode)
While Enterprise visits Earth for the launch of Columbia, Phlox is kidnapped and forced to help the Klingons deal with a grave threat toward their species. (Part 1 of 2) Summary Teaser A Klingon scientist works in a laboratory, watched by a Klingon general and a guard. A representation of a DNA helix is displayed behind the scientist. A door opens and a Klingon prisoner is led into the laboratory by two soldiers of the Klingon Empire. In Klingonese, the prisoner claims that his death sentence was commuted and demands to speak with the magistrate who presided over his trial. The Klingon soldiers strap him to a chair and hang a vial of green liquid above his head, which the scientist injects him with. Confused, the prisoner wails as his cranial ridges ripple and begin to dissolve. Act One :"Captain's starlog, November 27, 2154. We've returned home for the official launch of our sister ship, ''Columbia. On a personal note, I'll also be saying goodbye to one helluva chief engineer."'' Returning to Earth, Enterprise finds the NX class starship Columbia in the orbital drydock facility, undergoing final preparations for her maiden voyage. Meanwhile, Commander Tucker is packing a Technical Manual for Enterprise into a bag. He stops to look through a window as the construction work to Columbia is being completed. When T'Pol enters his quarters, Trip remarks that the new starship is beautiful. The Vulcan states that Enterprise and Columbia are virtually identical, although Trip claims that an experienced engineer can see the differences. Tucker notifies T'Pol of a "going away party" in the mess hall later and asks if she will be there. T'Pol says she doesn't understand the logic behind the engineer's departure and Trip eventually explains that he will find serving aboard Columbia challenging. He claims that T'Pol is not the reason for his transfer and that there other considerations in his life, apart from her. In San Francisco, Doctor Phlox and Ensign Hoshi Sato exit a restaurant called "Madame Chang's". Phlox is surprised that the place was so busy, although Hoshi explains that she told a few of her Starfleet friends about the restaurant. Phlox tells her that, earlier in the day, the organisers of the Interspecies Medical Exchange asked the doctor if he would like to serve as their Director of Xenobiology. Phlox states that he is considering the offer, although he would find it difficult to leave his shipmates on Enterprise. Suddenly, two shadowy figures step out of an alleyway and order Phlox to accompany them. When the Denobulan voices his confusion, one of the men aims a disruptor at the doctor. Hoshi uses her knowledge of aikido against the men but another hooded assailant appears behind her and knocks her to the ground. Phlox is struggling with one of the men when a disruptor blast hits him, rendering him unconscious. The doctor is restrained and carried away as Hoshi lies on the ground, barely conscious. As her eyes flutter, the linguist hears one of the men say something in an alien language. Act Two Later, when Captain Archer and Lieutenant Reed arrive at the scene of the crime, they meet Commander Collins of Starfleet Security. Hoshi tells Archer and Reed that she is fine and recounts that there were three men who came out of the shadows. Collins recalls that the ensign had told her the men spoke in a foreign, or alien, language. Collins tells Archer and Reed that the only DNA which Starfleet Security found belonged to Hoshi and Phlox. However, the security officers also detected some ionization traces nearby. Reed believes that the men were beamed away, although Collins explains that very few individuals have obtained transporter technology which would leave ionization traces. Collins presents the possibility that the men may have been organised by the same human who attacked Phlox several months ago. ("Home") Reed, however, doubts that. Collins informs Archer that Starfleet Security will continue to thoroughly investigate the crime and leaves the captain and Reed. Archer orders the lieutenant to check whether Starfleet Operations satellites picked up any transporter activity at the approximate time that Phlox was captured. Reed complies and walks away. Aboard Columbia, Trip informs the engineering staff that they will have to align the dilithium matrix within .3 microns. When one of the engineers replies that Trip's order doesn't correlate with what is written in one of the tech manuals, Trip answers that he probably has more practical experience than the warp field specialist who wrote the manual does. He orders Biggs and Pierce to recalibrate the warp field stabilizers and asks Rivers and Strong to start work on the injector assembly. As the engineers begin their duties, Trip notices that Captain Erika Hernandez has entered engineering. The captain reminds him that it's Starfleet protocol for a transferred officer to report to the captain when they come on board and asks Trip to come to the captain's mess later the next day. Before she leaves, Hernandez advises him to report to the quartermaster and update his uniform patch. In the captain's ready room aboard Enterprise, T'Pol enters and informs Archer that the Denobulan ambassador has notified Phlox's wives of the doctor's kidnapping. Archer tells the Vulcan that although Hoshi was barely conscious, the linguist thought she heard Phlox's kidnappers say something in an alien language. Archer asks T'Pol to conduct a mind meld with Hoshi. When the Vulcan worries that she has never initiated a meld before, Archer replies that he will advise her with the knowledge he gained from carrying Surak's katra. Meanwhile, Lieutenant Reed is puzzled when he discovers that Starfleet satellite grid 137 was off-line for maintenance at the time that Phlox was kidnapped. When he contacts Starfleet Operations, there is no reply. A human male dressed in dark clothing appears on the viewscreen which Reed was using to check the satellites. The man, Harris, claims he will tell Reed why the satellite grid was down if the lieutenant meets him at a specific address in San Francisco. In a darkened room, T'Pol tries to meld with Hoshi. When the ensign senses the meld isn't working, Archer suggests that the Vulcan tries to slightly relax her emotional suppression. Eventually, their minds merge. T'Pol helps Hoshi remember a time just before she and Phlox were assaulted. The Vulcan appears in Hoshi's memories and the ensign indicates to the shadowy figures before they attack. When they begin their assault, Hoshi struggles to focus. The ensign manages to focus long enough, however, to remember the men's words. She realises that the aliens spoke in the Rigelian language. On the bridge, T'Pol reports to the captain that a Rigelian freighter left Earth approximately two hours after Phlox was captured. The freighter was scheduled to travel to Proxima colony, although the vessel's trajectory would suggest it was heading elsewhere. Cancelling shore leave for the crew on Earth, the captain orders T'Pol to make sure that all officers are returned to Enterprise. He exits the bridge to contact Admiral Gardner in his ready room. In San Francisco, Reed meets up with the man he spoke to earlier. The lieutenant soon discovers that Harris was involved in shutting down the satellite grid. When Reed asks him if he knows Phlox's location, Harris answers that the section he is working for requires Reed's help. The lieutenant implies that he used to be employed by the same section, although he believed his tenure to be over. Harris claims that if Reed doesn't provide the assistance which is required, Phlox may die. Act Three In the same laboratory where experiments were conducted earlier, the Klingon general watches the scientist prepare another vial of green liquid to be tested. Restrained by two Klingon soldiers, Phlox is led into the lab. The general welcomes the Denobulan to Qu'Vat colony and warns him he will die unless he cooperates with Doctor Antaak, the Klingon scientist. When Phlox assumes he will be assisting Antaak, the general corrects Phlox that the Denobulan will be in charge. Antaak recognizes Phlox from an IME conference on Tiburon in 2149. When Phlox fails to recall seeing Antaak, the scientist claims he was disguised as a Mazarite because Klingon medics weren't invited to the meeting. As the general leaves, he states that he expects Phlox to prepare a progress report by sunrise on the following day. Antaak apologises for the general's impolite behaviour, a characteristic of the warrior caste. The scientist reveals that the Klingons are facing their greatest threat since the Hur'q attacked the Empire - an infection which has claimed millions already. Antaak fears the Klingons may become extinct if the infection isn't stopped. Phlox wonders why the Klingons didn't just ask Starfleet for help, although Antaak replies that would have made the Klingons look weak and dishonourable. The scientist recalls how Phlox's paper on viral propagation impressed him and tells the Denobulan he is interested in mutagenic research. Antaak encourages Phlox to begin mapping the virus's nucleotides and repeats that the virus is a great threat to the Klingon people. On the bridge of Enterprise, T'Pol reports that she is no longer detecting the Rigelian freighter's warp trial. Reed suggests that the freighter could have resumed its course on impulse velocity and Travis Mayweather mentions that Enterprise will intercept the vessel in 8.2 hours. When Archer hails engineering, no-one responds. The captain eventually speaks to Commander Kelby and tells the engineer that Enterprise needs more acceleration. Kelby says he'll try to increase the starship's velocity. On board Columbia, Trip and Captain Hernandez are enjoying a meal. Trip remarks that the food tastes good and Hernandez recalls that when she left her last assignment, Republic, she stole Captain Jennings' chef. Trip laughs, although his expression turns serious again when the captain makes him aware of two crew transfer requests since his transfer to Columbia. Not willing to reveal any names, Hernandez adds that she denied them their requested transfers, stating that engineering is already short-handed. She comments on the impression Trip seems to have made with the engineering staff. Tucker doesn't care about his impression as much as he does about his officers work. He notifies the captain that Columbia is almost ready for warp trials. Hernandez remembers that in an interview she saw with Trip after Enterprise returned from the Xindi mission, the commander said he couldn't imagine serving on any other vessel. She wonders what changed his mind. Trip explains the crew of Enterprise were becoming too familiar and that he sometimes prefers working with colleagues than friends. In T'Pol's quarters, the Vulcan is meditating. In her mind, she and Trip are in a completely white place. She asks Trip why he is with her, as he isn't usually in her meditations. Trip replies that the same question puzzles him and T'Pol explains that they are in her meditation. Trip comments that he doesn't find the white place isn't as interesting as a beach or the Fire Plains on Vulcan. When T'Pol asks Trip to leave her meditation, the engineer retorts that she should leave and reveals that the white space is his daydream. Rivers disturbs Trip's reverie and the commander returns to the real world. Rivers hands him a diagnostic and walks away. In her quarters, T'Pol is puzzled by her meditation. Archer contacts her from the bridge and informs her that Enterprise is nearing the coordinates of the Rigelian freighter. Rising to her feet, the Vulcan tells Archer that she is heading to the bridge. Later, the bridge's viewscreen displays the wreckage of the Rigelian craft. T'Pol determines that all of the vessel's Rigelian complement are dead and that there are no Denobulans on board. When Archer questions Reed if he can identify the vessel's destroyer, the lieutenant's station displays a message - "weapons signature confirmed". However, Reed erases the alert from his screen and lies to the captain that he can't verify an indentification. Believing the lieutenant's deception, Archer orders him to scan for the ship's data recorder. On Qu'Vat colony, Phlox believes that the Klingon virus is a mutated form of the Levodian flu. Antaak remarks that the virus is highly immune. Phlox suggests contacting the IME, who may have experience of dealing with the virus. The Denobulan adds that no-one at the IME would have to know specific details. However, Antaak sees no reason for the IME to become involved as the Klingons stole their entire medical database. Phlox and Antaak discuss the morals of stealing medical research. Soon, the Klingon general returns with another prisoner and a guard. Phlox examines the prisoner and concludes that the Klingon has been infected. The Denobulan worries that he and the uninfected Klingons are being exposed to the virus but Antaak reassures him that the infection only becomes contagious at stage three - the prisoner is currently only at stage one. When Antaak draws a weapon and aims it at the prisoner, Phlox stops him before he fires the weapon. The Klingon scientist and Denobulan doctor argue about the ethics of euthanasia. Suddenly, the Klingon general removes a disruptor from his belt and kills the patient himself, leaving Antaak and Phlox shocked. In his quarters, Reed opens a secure channel to Harris. The lieutenant communicates his frustration that the section of Starfleet which Harris works for destroyed the Rigelian freighter. When Reed asks what the complement of the Rigelian ship was, Harris refuses to reply. Reed discloses that he has completed an analysis of the weapons signatures and that he hasn't told Archer the identity of the destroyer vessel yet, although he doesn't know how long he'll be able to keep that information secret. Harris implies that Reed could say Orion raiders destroyed the Rigelian vessel but the lieutenant suggests divulging his secret to Captain Archer. Harris reminds Reed of Archer's duty as a captain and advises the lieutenant to become comfortable with Harris' orders. He recalls that Reed agreed to serve Harris' section long before he was assigned to Enterprise. As an explosion rocks the ship, Hoshi hails the crew and orders the crew to man the battle stations. Shortly before Reed closes the channel to Harris, he explains that Enterprise is under attack. Act Three As a Klingon Bird-of-Prey fires its disruptor cannons at Enterprise, Reed falls out of a turbolift onto the bridge. T'Pol announces that the Starfleet ship's hull plating is holding, although the Klingons are not responding to Ensign Sato's hails. Archer orders Reed, now at his post, to target the Bird-of-Prey's weapons. Meanwhile, a Klingon boarding party transport into a corridor on Enterprise and kill an officer who tried to call for help. Unlike usual Klingons, the members of the away team are missing their cranial ridges. They race through the corridor and enter an access tube. On the bridge, Hoshi confirms the presence of the intruders. Archer instructs Reed to seal the access tube where the Klingons are and deploy a team of MACOs. When one of the Klingon officers races to a computer panel, another Klingon, Marab, issues the officer an instruction in Klingonese. The MACOs arrive and fire phase rifles at the Klingons. Background Information This episode attempts to explain the makeup change in Klingons between TOS and Star Trek: The Motion Picture, which has been acknowledged as canon since DS9's "Trials and Tribble-ations". Affliction features the first appearance of the Rigelians in Star Trek. The bridge plan for the Columbia duplicates that of the alternate Enterprise from E%C2%B2. Rivers is played by Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane, who also made a brief cameo appearance in "The Forgotten". Memorable Quotes "I would've thought you'd pick a more interesting place. Like the beach or . . . one of those fire plains you showed me." - Trip to T'Pol, concerning the daydream/meditation "Captain Jennings said I could have anything I wanted when I left, so I took his cook." - Captain Hernandez to Trip Links and References Main Cast * Scott Bakula as Jonathan Archer * John Billingsley as Dr. Phlox * Jolene Blalock as T'Pol * Dominic Keating as Malcolm Reed * Anthony Montgomery as Travis Mayweather * Linda Park as Hoshi Sato * Connor Trinneer as Charles Tucker III Guest Cast * John Schuck as Antaak * James Avery as K'Vagh * Ada Maris as Erika Hernandez * Eric Pierpoint as Harris * Terrell Tilford as Marab * Kate McNeil as Collins * Brad Greenquist as Alien #1 * Derek Magyar as Kelby * Marc Worden as Klingon prisoner * Seth MacFarlane as Rivers References Augments; Biggs; Boshar; chef; ''Columbia''; court martial; Denobula; Denobulans; dilithium matrix; disruptors; Gardner, Admiral; Hur'q; IME; Jennings, Captain; katra; Klingons; Klingon Defense Forces; Klingon Empire; Klingon High Council; Klingonese; Levodian flu; MACOs; "Madame Chang's"; Mazarites; metagenics; microdyne coupler; N'Vak colony; Orions; Pierce; Proxima colony; quartermaster; Qu'Vat colony; Republic; Rigelians; Rigelian language; Rigelian freighter; Royal Navy; San Francisco; Section 31; Soong, Arik; Starfleet Operations; Starfleet Security; Strong; Surak; targ; Tiburon; transporter; Vulcans; Vulcan mind meld; warp field specialist; Xenobiology; Xindi. Category:ENT episodes